Rebecca Rose

The 2014 Grammy Awards featured a mass wedding of about 34 couples, a first in the award show's long history.

The ceremony was featured as part of a performance of Macklemore's "Same Love," a song which has become a marriage-equality anthem since its release last year.

Macklemore joined Mary Lambert for a performance of the song and both of them looked genuinely, adorably overwhelmed to be onstage at the Grammys. Towards the end of the song, Queen Latifah (who had moments before introduced them) emerged to begin officiating the wedding for dozens of couples in the audience.

Mr. Lewis, the group's producer, said that
the weddings "will be in our minds the ultimate statement of equality,
that all the couples are entitled to the same exact thing."

The segment follows what the Grammy
organizers said was the show's long history of addressing timely social
issues through music, like Elton John's duet in 2001 with Eminem, who
was then widely criticized as homophobic. "We're serious about this," said Ken Ehrlich, the longtime producer of the Grammys.

Just as Queen Latifah wrapped up the mass marriage ceremony, Madonna came out, dressed as Boss Hog and everyone was forced to sing "Open Your Heart," a song from 1986, in order to placate her.